In 2000 the number of accidents involving fatalities in Australia rose for the first time since 1995, increasing by 5% from the number in 1999 (table 23.20). All States except Western Australia, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory recorded increases in fatal road traffic accidents in 2000, South Australia recording the largest jump (14.4%) from 1999.

Australia-wide, there were 1,819 deaths in 2000 from road traffic accidents, an increase of 3.2% on the previous year and the highest level since 1996. South Australia recorded the highest increase (9.9%). Between 1994 and 2000 the number of persons killed from road traffic accidents fell in New South Wales (by 6.7%), Queensland (23.9%), and Tasmania (27.1%). A large fall (by 10.3%) in total road fatalities occurred in 1997, with Tasmania (down 50.0%), South Australia (down 18.2%) and Western Australia (down 20.2%) being the main contributors to the decline from 1996. The other years since 1994 experienced small fluctuations in fatalities.

The fatality rate from road traffic accidents per 100,000 persons in the Northern Territory was almost three times higher than the national rate in 2000, at 26.1 deaths per 100,000 persons (table 23.21). The Australian Capital Territory had the lowest rate of fatalities (5.8 per 100,000 persons).

23.21 ROAD TRAFFIC FATALITIES, By State/Territory - 2000

Persons killed

State/Territory

no.

per 100,000 population(a)

per 10,000 motor vehicles registered(b)

New South Wales

603

9.3

1.6

Victoria

407

8.5

1.2

Queensland

318

8.9

1.4

South Australia

166

11.1

1.6

Western Australia

213

11.3

1.6

Tasmania

43

9.1

1.3

Northern Territory

51

26.1

4.9

Australian Capital Territory

18

5.8

0.9

Australia

1,819

9.5

1.5

(a) Estimated resident population at 30 June 2000. (b) Number of registered motor vehicles and motor cycles (excluding tractors, caravans, plant and equipment) at 31 October 1999.

In 1999, the Northern Territory had the highest rate of casualties from road traffic accidents (191.3 per 100,000 persons and 35.8 per 10,000 vehicles in 1999), as shown in table 23.22. Victoria had 112.4 casualties per 100,000 persons resulting from road traffic accidents - a higher rate than the Australian Capital Territory (59.6), Tasmania (88.5), South Australia (91.8), Queensland (107.8) and Western Australia (111.2).

(a) Accidents reported to the police or other relevant authority which occurred in public thoroughfares and which resulted in death within thirty days or personal injury to the extent that the injured person was admitted to hospital.(b) Estimated resident population at 30 June 1999.(c) Number of registered motor vehicles and motor cycles (excluding tractors, caravans, plant and equipment) at 31 October 1999.(d) The release of these data for New South Wales has been suspended by the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority.Source: Australian Transport Safety Bureau, Road Injury Database; Population data - Estimated Resident Population, Australia, June 1999 (3201.0); registered vehicles - Motor Vehicle Census, Australia, 31 October 1999 (9309.0).

International comparison of road traffic fatalities

Table 23.23shows for 1998 how the number of fatalities in Australia compare with those for selected other countries. While Australia's rate of 9.4 road traffic-related fatalities per 100,000 persons is comparable to that of Canada (9.7) and Japan (8.5), it is considerably lower than for the USA (15.3) and France (15.1). Australia's rate is, however, markedly higher than for the UK and Sweden which both recorded 6.0 road traffic-related fatalities per 100,000 persons in 1998.